WELCOME

Educate Maine first published our Education Indicators report over a decade ago, highlighting information on ten key data points throughout the education pipeline. In recent years, due to a variety of factors – such as improvements in data collection and reporting through the state’s Data Warehouse; upheaval in the education system due to the coronavirus pandemic; and other societal shifts – we’ve expanded the report to include multiple measures that reflect education access, progress, and success for Maine people from birth through adulthood.

Our objective with this report is to provide an accurate, up-to-date, and well rounded snapshot of Maine’s education system. We compile and publish reliable data that aims to facilitate a diverse audience’s understanding of the education continuum, including information on how opportunities and outcomes vary by student characteristics.

The report strives to be a resource for educational stakeholders at all levels by establishing a holistic framework that holds Maine students at the center. By offering a comprehensive overview of our education system and identifying areas for improvement, we encourage continuous reflection, dialogue, and purposeful action to support ongoing efforts aimed at enhancing educational outcomes for all learners in Maine.

Sincerely,

Jason Judd, Ed.D.
Executive Director
Educate Maine

INDICATOR SUMMARY

These data points highlight key takeaways from the report. Click on the green bar to see selected data for each category. Not all data points in the report are featured below. You can click on the “Read More” button in each section to see complete data by category, or navigate using the menus at the top of the page.

MAINE SCHOOL ENROLLMENT

  • Maine public school enrollment increased by 749 students between fall 2021 and fall 2022. This is similar to an increase of 684 students between 2020-2021, however, overall enrollment is still down by about 4% compared to prior to the pandemic.

  • A significant portion of Maine students (37%) are considered economically disadvantaged.

  • Maine schools are more diverse than Maine’s population on the whole, comprising 15% students of color.

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EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Access

  • 69% of Maine children under 6 have all available parents in the workforce.

  • 22% of Maine children live in a childcare desert.

  • About 47% of Maine 4-year-olds are enrolled in publicly-funded pre-K, which is offered by 79% of districts statewide.

Affordability

  • When care is available, the average cost of full-time, center-based infant care in Maine is $11,700 per year.

  • A two-parent family making the state’s median income spends an average of 14% of their yearly income on childcare for one child.

  • A single-parent family making the state’s median income spends an average of 45% of their yearly income on childcare for one child.

Quality

  • Less than 1 in 5 Maine childcare providers (19%) are at a step 3 or 4 of the Rising Stars for Maine rating system, which is considered “high quality.”

Workforce

  • Maine’s current childcare workforce is estimated to be around 7,600 people.

  • The median wage of early childhood educators ($32,080) is only 56% the median wage of kindergarten teachers ($57,500).

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K-12 EDUCATION

Student Well-Being

  • 30% of Maine middle school students and 36% of high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless for two weeks or more.

  • 1 in 4 Maine high school students reported experiencing four or more Adverse Childhood Experiences. This rate increased from 1 in 5 students two years prior. The rate is higher for girls (31%) than for boys (18%).

  • 55% of middle school students and 52% of high school students in Maine report feeling like they matter in their community. These rates are dropping over time, meaning more and more students feel that they don’t matter.

For more data disaggregated by subgroup such as gender and race/ethnicity, click “Read More” below.

Career and Technical Education

  • There are 9,818 students participating in 27 career and technical education regions and centers across Maine. This number is increasing over time.

High School Graduation

  • The Maine high school graduation rate has been steady at 86% over the past five years.

  • The high school graduation rate varies by subgroup. For example, 78% economically disadvantaged students graduate from high school on-time compared with 93% of their higher income peers. Girls graduate at a higher rate than boys (89% vs. 84%).

Chronic Absence

  • Chronic absenteeism is on the rise in Maine. During the 2021-22 school year, 28% of students were chronically absent (missing 10 days or more of school).

  • Chronic absenteeism rates are higher at the middle- and high school level compared to elementary school.

  • 40% of students considered economically disadvantaged were chronically absent, almost double the rate of their higher-income peers (22%).

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POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

College Enrollment and Completion

  • The college enrollment rate is declining in Maine: 53% of Maine high school graduates enrolled in college in the fall of 2021, compared with 60% in fall 2019, prior to the pandemic.

  • College enrollment rates vary significantly by student subgroup, with notable gaps by student economic status, gender, race, multilingual learner status, and student disability status.

  • The college completion rate for Maine graduates has dropped to 60% from a pre-pandemic level of 64%.

Adult Education

  • 1,011 adults received a high school credential (diploma or HiSET) through Adult Education programs in the 2021-22 school year.

Postsecondary Degrees and Credentials of Value

  • 55% of Maine adults aged 25-64 hold a degree or credential of value – a precursor to skilled employment with family-sustaining wages.

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